Category: animals

I really should have added books to my list of acceptable holiday gifts, mostly because I am a greedy hoarder of all things glossy and gorgeous. Just cracking open a new monograph by a favorite artist is enough to give me a eyegasm, but don’t worry — I like to keep my peeping on the down low (insert lecherous laugh here).

Photographed in large format at museums based largely in France, Knorr’s images combine analog craftsmanship with a bit of digital trickery to highlight the chasm between the natural and civilized worlds. The results range from sweetly playful to shockingly menacing.

Last week after I posted the magical Diane Von Furstenberg leopard rug kt left a comment with a link to her dreamy tiger rug:

When she said it was in her nursery, I was pretty jealz, but when she said it was only $200 I went into full-blown freak out mode. I couldn’t believe that I had just finished my own tiger-friendly nursery and never knew that ebay held such cheap tigerly riches. Of course, I raced right over.

What I found was nothing short of magical:

Ok, so I know many of you don’t share my affinity for tacky animal decor but just amuse me for a day. I mean, really, you may not want this in your house but you can not deny the awesome power of this white tiger astral area rug. Holy fuck, it rulz.

Are you feelin it? Well then go on with your bad self and spend the $63.20 to make this 5′ x 8′ rug yours. YES, SIXTY THREE DOLLARS FOR AN 8 FOOT RUG. I’m sure it’s 100% flammable, but it’s also 1,000% awesome. Original link here, but if it’s expired, just search “black midnight tiger rug.” You’re welcome.

You guys know that I could never paint a color bolder than gray on any of my walls but that doesn’t negate my burning desire to hang out in rooms with some seriously bold color. Right now I’m being seduced by these moody emerald walls. Emerald? I know, go figure.

Now I’m not going to let a pesky little detail like my current inability to sit on that couch stop me from digging this room. As soon as the little bambino pops out I can roll all over that yellow beauty.

And if, like me, you can’t paint your walls green and, unlike me, you have a gragillion dollars, you can add the sexiest accessory known to mankind to your room via this Dian Von Furstenburg rug. Psst, I found this over at If the lampshade fits and have been dreaming of it ever since. Think I can sneak it onto my baby registry?

Summer of love series by Saiman Chow. For $100 a pop one of these precious works of art could be yours. Just think, you’d be well on your way to filling up your own X-Rated art pad like the one we saw Tuesday.

The New York Times is running an article online about extravagant fish tanks: $200,000 tanks with $1000 monthly maintenance fees. What I find particularly jaw dropping about the story isn’t the cost of the homeowner’s decor, it’s the fact that the homeowners consider fish decor in the first place.

Fish are animals. They do not belong in little glass boxes and they do not exist to decorate your room or to amuse you. They are living creatures. And seriously, before I get a bunch of hate comments (I’m not changing my mind) yes, yes it is different from having a cat or a dog, both of which are allowed outside to roam and coexist in a mutually beneficial relationship of companionship with their care givers. I do not own a cat so that my living room looks prettier. In fact, my cats make my space look much worse, but I love them more than my things so I manage.

(sorry for the long disclaimer, I just really don’t want to fend off hate comments today.)

The designers interviewed in the article note that aquariums answer the age old questions: “How do you humanize this space, how do you introduce natural elements? How do you make it feel like you’re not standing in a white, pristine, soul-less box?”

The owners of this 6,000 pound, $200,000 suspended tank “get lost in it” at night rather than the television set. I’m so so glad that nature’s creatures are able to provide you with endless entertainment.

It is noted that the owner’s of this tank’s other point of pride in their home is the tanning bed in the basement. Need I say more?

Ok, really, I’m sure there are lots of people who will disagree with me today. I’m sure several of you have aquariums and love your fishies and I’m sure you make great homes for them. And, no, they are not being hunted and eaten. I know there are several sides to the fish-in-home debate, and I could probably be persuaded to accept several of the gray areas, but the bottom line is that fish as decor creeps me out. Please try not to get too hatey today. Besides, this whole look is really 80s, and not in a good way. xoxo